[3], In November 1975, it was reported by the Associated Press that Ford's husband's advisors, who had previously worried her outspoken comments would hurt him in the 1976 presidential election, were now recognizing her popularity and desiring for her to have a greater role in the campaign. She had held the top post at the center since its founding. The march was led by prominent feminist leaders, including Ford, Bella Abzug, Elizabeth Chittick, Betty Friedan and Gloria Steinem. ", Tasha N. Dubriwny, "Constructing breast cancer in the news: Betty Ford and the evolution of the breast cancer patient.". [91], In 1978, the deadline for ratification of the ERA was extended from 1979 to 1982, resulting largely from a march of a hundred thousand people on Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington. July 8, 2011 Mrs. Betty Ford passes away at 93 years of age. In private, she triumphed over serious personal adversity. The series lovers highly anticipate the show and are peculiar to know about Betty Ford's first husband. "[67], Adding to heightened public awareness of breast cancer were reports that several weeks after Ford's cancer surgery, Happy Rockefeller, the wife of Vice President Nelson Rockefeller, also had a mastectomy. As it turns out, Betty Ford did send a letter to Michelle Obama. With Betty Ford you had a progressive woman . Fellow first lady Nancy Reagan also was "deeply saddened" by the news. Because the pills were prescribed by a physician, she did not believe that she had a . [7], Ford supported numerous charities as first lady. "[69], Dishes that Ford particularly liked serving at state dinners included wild rice,[25][74] Columbia River salmon, souffl, and flamb. But, before . [25] The first of these came only a week into Ford's presidency, hosting King Hussein of Jordan on August 16, 1974. "[88], Ford continued to be an active leader and activist of the feminist movement after the Ford administration. [54] She placed first in 1975. As First Lady of the United States from 1974-1977, Betty Ford was known for her candor. "Jerry did not want this," she wrote. It amounted to as aestheticization of breast cancer and her coverage became the major discursive model for looking at all breast cancer survivors. In her September 4, 1974 press conference, Ford declared her support for it. Ford's family has traveled to California and expects to arrange a service in Palm Springs soon, Barbara Lewandrowski, a family spokeswoman, told The Associated Press. [5], In 1936, after graduating from high school, Bloomer proposed continuing her study of dance in New York City, but her mother refused on account of the relatively recent loss of her husband. [114], In 1975, when Time named "American women" as its "Time Person of the Year",[39] the magazine profiled Ford as one of eleven women selected to represent "American women". [66], According to Tasha N. Dubriwny, the massive media coverage of Ford's mastectomy was constrained by stereotypical gender roles, particularly the need for breast cancer patients to maintain their femininity. [4], In 1926, when she was eight years old, her mother, who valued social graces, enrolled her in the Calla Travis Dance Studio in Grand Rapids, where Ford was taught ballet, tap dancing, and modern movement. A contrast was publicly drawn between Ford and Nancy Reagan, the wife of Ford's primary election challenger Ronald Reagan. Bloomer disliked the surname. Betty Ford died in 2011 at age 93, having overcome her addictions and founding the Betty Ford Center in 1982 to help other addicts recover. "[34] This reflects a common trend of American first ladies often being more popular than the presidents to which they are married. For more, click here: http://abcn.ws/BettyFordRIP She also organized her own dance group and taught dance at various sites in Grand Rapids, including the Calla Travis Dance Studio. [3] After the interview aired, a number of Ford's remarks in this interview on hot-button issues generated particularly immense media attention. [19], In 1977, the Fords moved to Rancho Mirage, California. Bush. She regularly drove her children around to their activities, such as her sons' Little League Baseball games and her daughter's dance classes. Betty Ford was 93 years old when she died; therefore, she can be said to have died from old age. After her initial anger over the intrusion in her life, Betty remained. [103], Only a part of Betty Ford's legacy will be that of her role as first lady. [19] Ford also, unsuccessfully, lobbied her husband to appoint the first woman to the Supreme Court of the United States[7][33] or as a running mate in the 1976 election. [19] For a long time, it was unclear whether Gerald Ford shared his wife's pro-abortion rights viewpoint. [94] The amendment did not receive enough states' ratification. Betty Ford. Her candor in talking about and dealing with substance abuse and treatment helped led to an improvement in how Americans talk about such matters. The union did not last, and they divorced amicably several years later. ", Gregory Knight, Myra. [3], In 2013, Ford was posthumously inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame. The Golden Girls star, who passed away on Dec. 31 at age 99, died due to a cerebrovascular accident, according to her death certificate obtained by PEOPLE on Monday. This meant that Gerald Ford was away from home for roughly half the year, placing a great burden on Ford to raise their children. "She has been an inspiration to so many through her efforts to educate women about breast cancer and her wonderful work at the Betty Ford Center," Reagan said. First Lady Betty Ford held her first official press conference in the State Dining Room on September 4, 1974. [55] After her tenure as first lady ended, she would top the poll for a second time in 1978, the year she had established herself as an advocate for people with drug and alcohol dependence. [75], During the Fords' 1976 trip to mainland China, when being shown an exhibition by a Chinese arts college dance group, Ford decided to join the dancers. "[66] Her openness about her cancer and treatment raised the visibility of a disease that Americans had previously been reluctant to talk about. Her acceptance speech spoke hopefully of the prospect that attitudes towards HIV/AIDS would shift, being de-stigmatized as cancer and alcoholism had (in part due to her contribution). The Betty Ford Center board endorsed the merger Tuesday. Gerald and Betty Ford with Richard and Pat Nixon as the latter depart the White House in disgrace on August 9, 1974. [84] In 1991, Ford was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President George H. W. Bush[3][97] She and President Ford jointly received a Congressional Gold Medal in 1999. In the 1950s Bette Ford turned heads and raised eyebrows when she became a model-actress-bullfighter. Throughout her husband's term in office, she maintained high approval ratings and was considered to be an influential first lady. [7][38][37], In 1975, when Time named the "American women" as its "Person of the Year",[39] the magazine profiled Ford as one of eleven women selected to represent "American women". Ford also, in a television interview with Barbara Walters, expressed her support for the United States Supreme Court's Roe v. Wade decision ruling abortion as constitutionally protected. "[28] Ford ultimately became a popular and impactful first lady. She briefly continued her studies with Graham in New York City until close family ties took her back to Grand Rapids in 1941. She also fundraised for No Greater Love, in appreciation of its work benefiting Children of Vietnam War MIA and POWs. During her life she helped change the way Americans think and talk about breast cancer, women's rights and substance abuse. Gerald Ford was in the middle of his campaign for the U.S. House of Representatives. [98] That same year, a Golden Palm Star on the Palm Springs Walk of Stars was dedicated to her and her husband. [3], As she had previously been with her breast cancer diagnosis and treatment, Ford was transparent with the public about her addictions and admittance to rehab. [3][5][12] They married on October 15, 1948, at Grace Episcopal Church in Grand Rapids. From a young age, she had a passion for dancing. [50] In 1974, Ford placed second in the poll. [8], When Bloomer was 16, her father died of carbon monoxide poisoning in the family's garage while working under their car, despite the garage doors being open. I'm sure I've saved at least one personmaybe more. [47] Kennerly has touted the image as both capturing Ford's personality and being a symbolic image showing the feminist first lady posing in what had conventionally been a room occupied predominantly by white men. [3] The broadcast of the interview saw strong interest from the public. "[3][13] For their honeymoon, the two briefly traveled to Ann Arbor, Michigan, where they attended a college football game between the Michigan Wolverines and the Northwestern Wildcats, before driving to Owosso, Michigan, to attend a campaign rally for Republican presidential nominee Thomas Dewey. They married in 1948, two weeks before he was elected to his first term in Congress. [8][70] She found out of this upcoming dinner and her responsibility for planning it through a phone call she received within 24-hours after her husband's swearing-in as president. [19] In her 1987 memoir she reflected on these addictions, writing, "I liked alcohol, it made me feel warm. Read the rest of "Betty Ford, champion of women's rights . By February 1948 the couple was engaged to be married. See full answer below. This large number of state dinners was, in part, due to great interest from foreign dignitaries in visiting the United States for a state dinner amid the United States bicentennial celebrations. In an interview on CBS' "60 Minutes," she talked about marijuana, equal rights for women, abortion and the possibility of a premarital affair for her daughter, Susan. "This is not a lack of willpower, this is a disease," she said at the time. She was also involved in her husband's political career by fulfilling the commitments expected of congressional spouses to help elevate her husband's regard among his House colleagues. She supported the equal rights amendment and the legalization of abortion. YouTube Betty White showing off her aquarium. Among the nations that Ford accompanied her husband to were China, Poland, Romania, and Yugoslavia. [90] She was an active member of the Junior League. As a young girl, Betty took up dancing, which quickly became her passion. [21] Ford would, ultimately, for most of the nine months she was second lady, be a high-profile public figure. He was a Bristol, Tennessee, native who had a 40-year career as a music . [3][19] Ford also posed for newspaper publicity photographs and was a clothing model for charity fashion shows, after a Republican had urged her to do so since they felt that Democratic Party spouses had far outnumbered Republican spouses in such publicity-generating activity. Since 1982 Siena College Research Institute has conducted occasional surveys asking historians to assess American first ladies according to a cumulative score on the independent criteria of their background, value to the country, intelligence, courage, accomplishments, integrity, leadership, being their own women, public image, and value to the president. [7][34][37] However, polling would show that her comments were accepted by many Americans. Shortly after she decided to file for divorce, Warren fell into a coma. As was the case during Gerald Ford's vice presidential swearing-in, Betty Ford held the bible upon which he placed his hand while taking his oath of office. It focuses on the middle school teacher Betty Ford's murder. Rancho Mirage, California, USA; Recently Passed Away Celebrities and Famous People. After leaving the White House, Betty Ford publicly acknowledged her addiction to alcohol and painkillers. White House photographer David Hume Kennerly took a photo of her on the table. The cause of Betty Ford's death was never disclosed. Much of this progress began in the 1970s through the voice and advocacy of Betty Ford. Shortly after they married, he began to sell insurance for another company. "Issues of Openness and Privacy: Press and Public Response to Betty Ford's Breast Cancer. Penn State World Campus (2013). Elizabeth "Betty" Bloomer was born on April 8, 1918, in Chicago, Illinois, and spent most of her childhood in Grand Rapids, Michigan. YouTube. "I'm not out to rescue anybody who doesn't want to be rescued," she once said. The former, then in her 90s, sent the latter a letter in 2009, shortly after Barack Obama's presidential inauguration. [3], After her husband's narrow defeat, there was some anecdotal speculation that Ford may have both have helped to alienate conservative Republicans from voting for her husband and at the same time helped attract him support from liberal and moderate Republicans, Democrats, and independents. [83] The fact that Ford had, for years, been given tranquilizers to treat a pinched nerve in her neck, was public knowledge as far back as her time as second lady. In 1985, Ford received the Los Angeles AIDS Projects "Commitment to Life Award". [3][5], In August 1947, she was introduced by mutual friends to Gerald Ford, a lawyer and World War II veteran who had just resumed his legal practice after returning from Navy service, and was planning to run for the United States House of Representatives. By her second birthday, however, she was living in Grand Rapids, Michigan, the city she always considered her home. 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